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Universal Software Radio Peripheral From GnuRadio

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the fun-toys-for-all dept.

The Universal Software Radio Peripheral for GNURadio has now gone into production and is available for purchase for $450. It used to be insanely expensive to acquire this technical equipment. Now the price has dropped by two orders of magnitude, to something about as expensive as a high-end graphics card. How long will it be till it's labeled a terrorist tool and banned?

4 of 320 comments (clear)

  1. Re:What's it do? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    A quick search on google revealed what this thing is.. Basically it allows you to build radio receiving equipement using software instead of traditional hardware (resistors, capacitors, transistors etc..). To quote something I just read 'getting code closer to the antenna'. Interesting idea cause it means you could theoretically write a receiver to decode digital signals (like TV) without paying for it? (Ok, perhaps a little un-realistic at the moment but this is the basic idea).

  2. Salon Article about the broadcasting spectrum... by dcowart · · Score: 5, Informative

    Essentially this is a device to 'tune' to any of the millions of frequencies that are in the upper part of the non-visible Electromagnetic spectrum. TV and Radio are broadcast in the long wavelength low frequency part of the specturm. Pretty pictures at Nasa

    Anyway, Here's a Salon Article about the polictical & technical aspects of it:
    http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2003/03/12/spect rum/index.html (Warning: you may have to click through a stupid ad.)

    --
    www.rdex.net
  3. SDR and hacking radios... by VE3ECM · · Score: 5, Informative
    SDR has long been considered the 'Holy Grail' in radio communications.

    There were quite a few pages dedicated to the advances in digital radio and SDR in Monitoring Times a few months back.

    One of the biggest advantages to a true SDR radio is that the manufacturer can build one or two models of radios, and have different software loads depending on bandsplit, features, costs, etc.

    Motorola tried that with their Jedi-series and XTS series of handy talkies over the past decade... biggest problem was that it is pretty simple (technologically) to take a radio with no special features (smartnet, digital modes, tone signalling, etc.) and enable the features by cloning the software load of another model.

    They did smarten up to that with the MTS2000 line of radios; any attempt to force a 'codeplug' into it that didn't belong would turn the unit into a brick, and you'd have to send it back to Motorola for a costly repair (as well as a stern talking to for 'hacking' at the radio).

    True software defined radios would be a lot easier to secure... on paper it would drive prices way down... in reality, as long as the radio manufacturers control the public service contracts, prices will still remain sky high.

    As an aside, WiNRADiO markets a device that could *almost* be considered an SDR device... super pricey for a receiver, but neat concept.

    I am looking forward to the day we see true SDR transceivers.

  4. With Tags by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    Is it really so hard to use tags?

    Software radio or SDR - an intresting subject where mathematical formulas become radio.

    See for a high level overview.

    Good reading is Understanding digital Signal processing by Richard G. Lyons. Prentice Hall, 1st ed: ISBN 0201634678 (amazon.com, search). 2nd ed: ISBN 0-13-108989-7 (amazon.com, search)

    VanuBose 's company Vanu Technology demonstrated a software radio based on an iPAQ with a digital radio "backpack", in May 2003. Here are some links:

    Slashdot article

    Linuxdevices.com

    Vanu.com

    Vanu.com

    Here's a note on the future of software defined radio

    Several relevant pointers available here